Bypass construction starts, then stops

The CalTrans contractor began work Monday morning installing fences for the Highway 101 bypass around Willits and was met with a vocal group of protestors. The discovery of three ground level bird's nests in the area of work, prompted CalTrans to halt at noon the first day. As of press time Tuesday, CalTrans was still awaiting clearance from biologists at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to restart the efforts.

While some of the protestors contend CalTrans has jumped the gun by beginning its work, CalTrans refutes this claim. "To the best of our knowledge Caltrans has all the permits needed and has met all the permit conditions necessary to begin work this week," says CalTrans spokesman Phil Frisbie.

Flat Iron Construction began offloading equipment to install fencing Monday morning on East Hill Road. As the work began to unfold, an organized group of protestors began calling for concerned citizens to gather at the East Hill and at the Warbler tree sit site.

CalTrans management was also present in force, including having a public affairs officer on site. Several officers from the California Highway Patrol remained on standby at the scene.

CalTrans expects to install a fence to enclose the entire bypass route. It will install specialized fencing along "environmental sensitivity areas" and chain link fencing elsewhere. In areas considered environmentally sensitive the special fencing leaves a two foot gap underneath to allow smaller wildlife to slip below it and it has gaps at prescribed distances to allow wildlife to pass between sections.

Much of the fencing started on Monday was associated with environmentally sensitive areas. While some fencing activity also began near the southern end of the bypass near the tree sit, the access road there remains open.

CalTrans had authorized the contractor to "knock down brush and small trees" along the fence route. When three bird's nests were discovered along the route by the protestors, a California Fish and Wildlife biologist Jo Ann Dunn examined the nests and the project was halted for now in an abundance of caution, says Frisbie.

One of the issues in Frisbie's mind is whether one of the nests was planted by protestors. "One of them literally fell apart, the grasses were wrapped and not woven," says Frisbie.

Despite these concerns, CalTrans project personnel are in the process of clarifying protocols between CalTrans and California Fish and Wildlife.

"We are making sure there are no questions about our work," says Frisbie. "We are going above what is normally required."

Warbler, the protesting tree sitter, remains committed to her protest. "I intend to stay here as long as it takes," she vows. Warbler and her ground support team have stockpiled water and supplies to prepare for wherever the protest takes them.

"We have a great group of people committed to stopping this bypass," says Warbler. "We stopped them this week for sure."

The spring-like weather continues to cooperate with Warbler's tree sit, which has been underway since January 28. She is still adjusting to the effects of the wind. The tree moves quite a bit in windy conditions and the swaying has been hard for Warbler to adjust to.

She urges her supporters to go to the website www.savelittlelakevalley.org to find ways to join the protest, learn more about the project impact or to contribute to the cause.